Associated Press Labels Illegal Immigrants ‘Undocumented Citizens’

by Don Irvineon September 8, 2017

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The Associated Press which in 2013 revised its Stylebook by banning the term “illegal immigrant” went one step further in an article it published on Tuesday by referring to illegal immigrant students affected by President Trump’s repeal of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program as “undocumented citizens.”

The story reported on Democratic Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s promise to Solorio Academy High School students that they “have nothing to worry about” with regard to the repeal of DACA, and Chicago schools “will be a Trump-free zone,” adding that “The Chicago Sun-Times reports that school officials say about a third of the school’s students are undocumented citizens.”

But that isn’t accurate. The story in the Sun-Times said that Chicago Public Schools wouldn’t tell them how many undocumented students — not citizens — were enrolled in their system. It isn’t clear where the AP got the one-third figure from because the only stories that could be found mentioning the number originated from the AP story.

The use of the term “undocumented citizens” is no mistake by the AP. They are trying to use their influence to dupe readers into believing that these individuals are actually citizens under DACA and that they represent a large swath of the Chicago Public School system in an effort to undermine Trump’s repeal of DACA.